A Children's Story
by Northern Goshawk
Summary: Legends and stories are eventually proven false, right? That's what happened with the Order of the Stone. Their legend proven to be lies, though most thought it was fact. But all his doubts were silenced as he stared into those white, soulless eyes that were supposed to be from a mere children's story. Story idea adopted from Toni42. ON TEMPORARY HIATUS
1. Prologue

**A/N Awesome thanks to Toni42 for letting me write this story (even though it was his original idea :P)**

**With his blessing, I'm finally making this story come true :D**

**Obviously, this has no correlation to my other story, _When Family Matters_, whatsoever (despite it also including our good old white-eyed villain), nor does it have my Jesse's background.**

**I hope you guys enjoy what's in store for us here, and I also hope you like this version of Herobrine's story, contrary to most people's headcanons.**

**Whew, so here we go!**

* * *

"Tell us a story, ma!" the young boy demanded. His chocolate-brown eyes shone eagerly as his mother laughed, fondly looking down at the mocha-haired child.

"Okay, okay!" Her eyes swept over the girl sitting next to her twin brother, her similar green eyes sparkling as she perked up in interest. "Jessi, which story do you think I should tell this time?"

Jessi's forehead wrinkled as she pondered the question thoughtfully. Even at the age of 9, she was already significantly more pensive and mature than girls her age. "What about the story of the man with white eyes?" she suggested.

"Ooh, that's my favorite!" The boy's eyes sparkled with happiness. He plopped down on Jessi's lap, who shoved her brother off violently, though her face held a hint of amusement.

"Shove off, Jesaiah!"

Their mother laughed fondly again as she took in her two children, both with shining eyes and eager hearts. "Alright, then. I will tell you the story of…" She paused, perhaps for dramatic effect. "Herobrine," she breathed, dropping her voice into a whisper that sent shivers down the twins' backs.

"Long ago, an unknown, powerful being known as the Creator crafted lush worlds, filled with beauty and color. This world became known as the First Realm, the Land of Myths. Within them, he created the very first monsters and animals. And, with this power, he created the first man and woman.

"But with good must come evil, since one cannot exist without the other. So, from the ashes rose another: Herobrine."

Jesaiah and Jessi felt shivers go down their back, leaning in eagerly as their mom continued.

"They say he looked exactly like the first man created, except he had glowing eyes… eyes that held death to whoever looked into them.

"So, does that mean that he could kill someone just by _looking_ at them?" Jesaiah interrupted, looking slightly incredulous. Jessi huffed, shoving her brother and earning herself a "Hey!" from him.

" 'Course not, dummy," she chided. "It just means that people were afraid of him."

Their mom nodded, her face so mock-serious it was almost comical. "Yes, Jessi," she agreed. "_Very_ afraid."

Jesaiah grumbled to himself but settled down and continued listening in.

"Legends had it that whoever saw him _disappeared_-" At this, she splayed her hands out suddenly in front of her, causing Jesaiah to jerk back and for Jessi to give a start. "-never to be seen again. Where they were last seen were only pyramids of dirt and floating cobblestone buildings that weren't there before."

"Whoa," Jesaiah breathed. He exchanged a look with Jessi.

"When the Creator noticed the disappearances, he knew that Herobrine must've been the one to take those people. The two fought. Earthquakes shook the earth, volcanoes roared, and fire rained down from the sky! The battle lasted for months! Millions of people and monsters died in this struggle for power."

Jesaiah and Jessi were on pins and needles now, listening to the battle with bated breath and wide eyes.

"But, in the end…" Their mom paused, before giving a sad smile. "The Creator won. And to make sure that Herobrine never kills people, he locked Herobrine up in a new realm, one of fire and ashes, the same one Herobrine himself created. We know it now as the Nether."

"That's amazing," Jessi remarked, hugging her knees to her chest.

"It is," Jesaiah agreed.

Their mom continued, "For further protection, the Creator employed a young man named Enderus to rule a new realm, one known as the End. Enderus created the Endermen and the Enderdragon, so that when Herobrine unleashes the Nether on the Overworld, the Endermen and Enderdragon would fight against them." Mom paused, as if contemplating her own words.

"Is that why Nether creatures hate Endermen?" Jesaiah asked.

"Yes…well, most of the time." Mom added this last bit mostly to herself, though Jessi caught it. She frowned.

"But word has it that Herobrine still lies in the Nether, waiting for the right time to come back to the Overworld. A prophecy, as old as the battle itself, says that a human with the blood of both an Ender and a Wither would be the savior… or destroyer of the Overworld." Her eyes flashed with some undecipherable emotion, but the twins didn't notice.

"But how could a human have both Wither _and_ Ender blood?" Jesaiah asked, frowning thoughtfully. "Didn't the story say they hate each other?"

Their mom shrugged casually, though if one were to look closer, her eyes were uneasy. "Who knows?" She kept her voice light. "But they say that from the ashes Herobrine has been born from, and to the ashes he will return."

A tense silence came over the three, Jesaiah with his wide-eyed awe and Jessi's with her pensive expression.

It was broken when Jessi asked, "Do you think that the Order of the Stone would be able to stop him?"

Jesaiah perked up immediately. "Yeah! They defeated the Enderdragon; they can do anything!"

Their mom smiled at them.

Jessi stretched her body out on the ground, a thoughtful look in her eyes. "Do you think _we_ could defeat Herobrine?"

Her brother grinned, a wild gleam in his eyes. "What if _we_ became famous just like the Order because _we_ defeated Herobrine?" He got up and feigned punching and kicking, Jessi watching her brother with amusement.

"You won't be able to with _those_ moves," she chided.

Jesaiah pouted, plopping down on the ground. "One day," he vowed. "One day _I'll_ be the one to defeat Herobrine."

Mom chuckled, ruffling his hair. "I'm sure you will. But now it's time for bed." She beckoned to the two. With that, she led them out of the room to their bedroom.

They didn't see the glint of unease in her eyes, nor the tenseness in her shoulders.

* * *

_7 years later…_

All was silent in the night. Nothing disturbed Beacontown, not even the sound of the animals, for they had all gone to sleep.

Nothing broke the everlasting darkness of the night except for a flash of white.

Mobs turned as they heard footsteps crunching on the cobblestone path, perhaps wondering if there was a nice midnight snack waiting for them. When they got a good look, though, they all scrambled out of the stranger's way, as if afraid of provoking his wrath.

As they should be.

The stranger stopped on the top of a hill that overlooked Beacontown, gazing down at the town. He scanned the terrain until his eyes found the building he was looking for.

There it was; the quartz hall of the Order of the Stone, sitting there in all its majestic glory. He knew that newest heroes were still sleeping, oh yes, but he _was _here for a reason, after all.

He cast his mind out, his Eagle-Eye skill to a boy who slept in a newly-built treehouse. He lay on the cot, oblivious to the outside world. The young boy shifted, muttering, before he settled down, his soft breaths audible to the stranger's enhanced hearing. The stranger's eyes narrowed.

_The Slayer of the Storm._

He must be sure of his choice.

He cocked his head, contemplating his other options. Then he swept a hand out. A magical hologram of fire flickered to life, and if one were to look closer, they could see digits swirling around within. He pulled up profiles of the new Order of the Stone, his gaze sweeping over the information. The redstone engineer...no. The bulky griefer boy...not even close. The warrior girl...maybe, but sadly, not quite. The blond...hmm.

But the leader...

A smile that had been playing on his lips broke into a toothy grin.

His hunch was correct after all.

_You will be perfect for my plan, young one._

His sight returning back to him, he looked over to the quartz hall again. _Pity that such a marvel would be destroyed when my plan succeeds,_ he mused to himself. He chuckled, dismissing the thoughts from his head. _But in the end, it won't matter._

_After all, nothing built can last forever._


	2. Disappearances

**Review Reply**

**Toni42: He definitely has something up his sleeve / I also thought that Jesaiah (well, some other variation of it) was a good name for Jesse, but I kinda banked off of your Movie Mode story X) I also changed it so that his name was Jesaiah / Oof, yeah, that's… *wince*** **Don't worry, I updated it so that it doesn't include Notch anymore, but instead has the Creator (like, God God)** **as the hero. And yes, I know that Notch isn't with Mojang anymore lol / Yes, this has the Jesse twins, but the one who's going to be portrayed in this story will be Jesaiah. Jessica, on the other hand…well, I could expand the story a bit since she has…something else going on. I added the Order Hall literally on impulse, because I got to put in the "Nothing built can last forever" line XD**

**I hope you enjoy the first official chapter of A Children's Story!**

* * *

Jesse frowned. "This is the second disappearance?"

"Third," Olivia corrected. She shifted through different files, each detailing a missing person. "And according to eye-witnesses, they disappeared without a trace. But the last place they were seen has something…strange going on."

Jesse sighed, putting his head into his hands. Lately, people have been swamping the New Order of the Stone with reports of people going missing, leaving no sign of where they were. Petra, Axel, and Lukas were currently out there, investigating the latest disappearance and collecting eye-witness testimonies.

But they have yet to visit all of the disappearance sites.

Well, Jesse had good reason. If whatever that was out there had managed to whisk people away without them appearing again, no clues whatsoever, then they could probably easily pick them off.

That was why when Lukas approached Jesse with the idea, he shut it down. "I don't want the same thing happening to any of you guys," he had said.

Petra had crossed her arms, eyes dancing with exasperation. "What, and you don't think we could handle it?"

Jesse had swept his gaze over all his friends. "Whatever's out there, whoever's doing this… they must be really sly or something. How could someone take another person without any signs of a struggle?"

All of them had paused as his words sank in. Finally, Axel nodded, his face serious for once. "That makes sense."

Olivia and Lukas had whole-heartedly agreed with the burly griefer.

Petra had glanced up at him, her eyes softening slightly. "You don't have to worry so much."

But Jesse does. He worried what would happen if he weren't there to help them, save them. If they were taken by this mysterious stranger, then he would never forgive himself. Not after…him.

Reuben.

Jesse felt his chest tighten as his breath caught in his throat. Tears welled in his eyes, but he fought against the sudden urge. Jesse couldn't save him. Even after being able to kill a Witherstorm, he wasn't able to save his own pig. Why, because he would never be strong enough, could never be fast enough, wouldn't be heroic enough _his fault it was all his fault-_

"Jesse?"

Jesse started from his thoughts. Olivia was looking at him oddly. "Are you alright?"

Jesse locked his emotions (_no one needs your burden_) and plastered on a faintly surprised face. "Why wouldn't I be?"

Olivia frowned and opened her mouth, as if about to say something, then seemed to pause. She slowly closed her mouth, face still puzzled. "I just wanted to make sure you're okay."

Jesse averted his eyes, absentmindedly tapping the table with his fingers. "Nah, I'm-I'm okay."

He sensed that Olivia wanted to say something more, but instead, she mumbled a quiet, "Alright." A thick blanket of silence settled over them, leaving silence that was only broken by the rustling of paper and Jesse's tapping finger.

If he had been stronger, faster, better, less of a… well, a loser, then Reuben would still be here.

But he's not.

Some hero he was, huh?

Tears welled again in the corner of his eye, but he blinked them back. You shouldn't show weakness. You can't show weakness.

To ease his mind from his doubts (_worthless, useless loser_), he turned his mind back to the missing people. Jesse frowned, almost reflexively, and pondered the situation.

So far, they had no leads at all as to where the missing people are. Even the eye-witnesses and the people's family members reported that they didn't have a clue, which was…slightly concerning in the least.

He was beginning to wonder if they had to investigate the crime scene after all.

The doors to the hall flung open, smacking against the walls. Jesse and Olivia simultaneously looked up. Axel blundered in, his face filled with concern. Petra followed him, her face holding a hint of frustration. Lukas trailed in after them, looking slightly worried.

"Nothing?" Jesse asked, already knowing the answer based off of their faces.

Petra sighed, her fingers tangling in the strands of her hair. "Nothing."

Lukas ran a hand through his hair, looking slightly distressed. "It's weird. The eye-witnesses saw them at one moment, and the next they're gone. Even their families have no idea where they could be, especially since the last place they were seen was far from the town."

Jesse perked up at that. "Far from the town?" he echoed, exchanging an intrigued glance with Olivia.

Lukas nodded. "Yeah."

Jesse leaned back in his chair, breathing out. He let his mind flash back to when he and Olivia were checking out the reports. Suddenly, he remembered something. "Olivia, you'd said that there was something strange going on at the disappearance sites?"

The curly-haired girl nodded. "But, since we aren't going to check it out, it's hard to believe the reports…"

Petra leaned forward, her eyes sparking with excitement. "What is it?"

Olivia hesitated before reluctantly reporting, "Unnatural structures, all made from either dirt or cobblestone. Pyramids of dirt, and floating cobblestone."

Something about what she had described stirred a vague memory in Jesse, but he pushed it away, biting his lip. There was silence for a long moment as everyone processed this. Then Olivia cleared her throat, directing their attention back to her.

"Jesse… I know that you said you didn't want any of us to investigate the disappearance sites, but if what the reports are saying are true…" Olivia bit her lip, obviously unsure if she should propose her idea. "We have no lead from just talking to witnesses. If anything, concrete proof should be at the site. Don't you think it's worth a shot?"

Jesse realized, with sudden discomfort, that everyone's attention was directed towards him now. He leaned back into his seat, thinking over what the curly-haired girl had said.

He did think that they had a better shot investigating the sites of the disappearances. With no lead as to where the missing people went from mere eye-witnesses, that seemed to be their only choice now, doesn't it?

And yet…

He didn't want to needlessly put his friends in danger just because he was confident about their skills in handling assailants. He was, it was just…something didn't seem quite right with these disappearances. Something darker was brewing underneath it.

Something unnatural.

If they were going to do this, they would at least be cautious about it.

"Okay," Jesse muttered quietly. Louder, he said, "Okay." All heads snapped towards him, their expressions surprised.

_Don't act like I'm like that_, Jesse grumbled to himself, though he was joking in his head. "Listen carefully, 'cause this is what we're gonna do:

"Lukas, you and I will investigate the latest disappearance site. Axel, Olivia, and Petra will travel to the other two sites. We'll see what we can find; when we get back here, we can go over what we found."

"Why can't we go alone?" Petra demanded.

"We have to be cautious about this," Jesse explained. "Whatever's out there, I don't want to risk tempting it by leaving one of you guys out there alone."

Petra snorted, crossing her arms. "You act like we can't defend ourselves."

Jesse willed himself to not snap at her. Part of him sympathized with her, knowing that she meant well. The other part of him was completely stressed out, trying to fit all the puzzle pieces together, and yet another part of him was just not wanting to deal with any cranky Petras. Or cranky _anybody_, for that matter.

"I'm not saying you can't," Jesse said, keeping his voice calm. "I'm just saying, if worst comes to worst, you'll have help."

Petra huffed. "Sure sounds like-"

Before she could finish the sentence, or for Jesse to react, Olivia put a calming hand on the redhead's shoulder, silencing the warrior. Jesse shot her a grateful look, to which Olivia reciprocated. She murmured something in Petra's ear, too low for Jesse to hear.

When she was done, Petra sighed, crossing her arms, though Jesse noted she seemed a lot more relaxed. "Fine," she grumbled, "but if whoever's out there tries to take us, I'm fighting them."

Jesse felt his mouth twitch amusedly. "Go ahead."

Petra nodded stiffly before she gestured to Axel and Olivia, sauntering out the double doors. Olivia paused, shooting Jesse a look that meant Be careful before heading out herself. Axel hovered near the doors, glancing at Jesse, as if unsure of himself, before Olivia's hand slithered out and grabbed him, pulling him out the doors.

Lukas blinked, then snorted in amusement. "I will never understand those two."

Jesse made a noise of agreement and gestured towards Lukas, walking into the bright sunlight. As they walked through the bustling town, filled with bright colors, the smell of fresh food from vendors, and the chatter of people (and animals), Jesse couldn't help but sense the hairs on his neck raising forebodingly.

Someone was watching them.

* * *

The stranger's eyes slitted as he focused his gaze on the two boys, one who was the blond and the other who had mocha-colored hair.

_Finally._

He swiveled his head, using his Eagle-Eye vision to zoom in on what he assumed was their destination; the latest site for the disappearance.

He felt a smile curl his lips. He could care less about the people, so long as the boy got close to _it._

_The plan's in motion._

* * *

**A/N Yeee I _know_ that this chapter was a little bit boring, but just bear with me a little bit longer!**

**I don't have any proper action shown until, mm, maybe chapter 5?**

**That's when things get a little...intense.**

**Now, something to note about me: I'm not one to easily cry when reading a story. Idk why, it's just my thing. There was a quote that said something along the lines of, "If the author doesn't cry when writing, the reader can't cry." But because I am somewhat immune to emotional factors, Idk if I'm writing something worth crying _about._**

**What I can write is angst, though, but even then I'm unsure of the emotional factor in that.**

**So yeah.**

**Hope you enjoyed!**


	3. Investigating Pyramids of Dirt

**Review Reply:**

**Toni42: Thanks! I didn't know if I was good at keeping any of them in-character, especially when I stick to what's in Jesse's head :P / Yeah, she…she has her own problems to deal with lol. I may reveal it in time, but I guess that won't happen until this story gets some more love though. *Pats story on the head* / Thank yooooouuuuu / Ah, it was no hassle at all! ;)**

**With this, enjoy Chapter 2!**

* * *

"Huh," Jesse mused, surprised at how calm and casual his voice was. Especially since he was screaming internally. "That's…odd."

Lukas gave him a look that clearly meant, _Understatement of the year!_

Right in front of them, looking like a harmless build, was a pyramid of dirt.

Now, that didn't sound intimidating in and of itself.

What was intimidating was that, as far as Jesse knew, _nobody_ had come to the site of the disappearance. Well, can't blame them; who would _want_ to frolic all alone in the same area someone had just disappeared in? And Jesse was _pretty_ sure he'd been here a couple times before, based on the trees and flower placement. But that made this pyramid a _lot_ more… spooky? Chilling?

Ah, Jesse mused. Creepy was the word.

"What gave it away?" Lukas snarked. "The pyramid of dirt, or the air that screams '_Danger!'_?"

Jesse ignored him, scanning the structure for something, _anything,_ that served as proof for the missing person.

But seriously, this was _really_ starting to freak Jesse out. A lot. He's faced a lot in the past months: the Witherstorm going rampant, killing a lot of people (_stupid loser, you couldn't save _any _of them_).

So saying something freaked Jesse out was saying a _lot_.

Lukas circled the pyramid warily, his eyes flitting back and forth as he assessed the dirt structure. "This…is really uniform…"

"Way too uniform to be normal," Jesse agreed. A memory he had locked in a deep, dark closet again tried to budge its way to the surface, but Jesse ignored it in favor of studying the structure.

The dirt was arranged in a way so that it had a base of nine blocks with a lone block on top, in the center of the base. Jesse looked up, locking eyes with Lukas' serious blue eyes.

It was clear what the blond was thinking: _This must have a clue._ Jesse tore his gaze from Lukas, again searching for clues that the person (or the kidnapper) would have left.

"What do you think we should do?" Lukas asked aloud. He skirted around the architecture (_could they even _call _it architecture?_) and stood next to the hero, peering at Jesse. "I mean, I don't see anything else around here that screams '_Clue!'_."

Jesse stayed silent for a moment as he let his mind scramble for a plan. It was funny, he mused in the back of his brain. Normally, when he was in a life-or-death situation, he would've thought of something right away.

Except he couldn't when Reuben-

His breath suddenly caught in his throat. _That didn't help Reuben, did it?_ a voice cruelly taunted in the back of his head. _Foolish child! When will you learn that you're a nobody?_

"Hey, Jesse? Jesse." Lukas' voice snapped Jesse out of his thoughts. He looked over to see Lukas peering at him, concerned.

"Are you all right?"

Jesse blinked, focusing back on the blond. He opened his mouth, not sure what to say. Maybe an "_I'm fine,"_ or a "_Why are you asking?"_ Heck, maybe even a sarcastic remark: "_We're in the middle of investigating a disappearance site with a supernatural clue, and you want to ask how I am?"_

Jesse frowned as the word _supernatural_ flashed through his head.

Why-

That's when he saw it.

A yellowish-white sheet of paper was lying on the ground, a little off from the side of the base adjacent to where they were standing. For some reason, he felt _drawn_ to that sheet. It wasn't because he felt as if it were some clear clue that detailed how to find the missing. No, it was something _deeper,_ something _darker._ An irresistible pull that had no conceivable cause.

That's what scared Jesse.

Evidently Lukas had followed his gaze to where the sheet lay since he heard Lukas suck in a breath sharply. "Was that there before?"

Jesse tried to remember whether or not the sheet was there, but it was all in a shock-and-awe blur. "I don't remember," he responded carefully, trying not to disturb Lukas even further.

Regardless, Lukas still groaned, his face a pasty-pale. "Great, so we're faced with a pyramid of dirt that pops outta nowhere and a note that _also_ popped outta nowhere."

Jesse quirked an eyebrow, a habit he'd picked up from watching all his friends' shenanigans. "I didn't say it wasn't there before," he reminded the blond.

"It was _implied_," Lukas stressed.

Jesse couldn't help but roll his eyes. He approached the note carefully. With every step, though, the pull go _stronger_, tugging him in.

This made him slightly wary, though. What could be so enticing about a _note?_ Scratch that, _how_ could a note _be_ enticing?

"Uh, what are you doing?" Lukas asked nervously.

Jesse knelt down in front of the piece of paper. By now, the pull was almost overwhelming. He fought down the urge to snatch the note right then and there (_use your head for once, you only kill everyone with your impulses_) and scanned the area around it. Traps…probably not. Who would rig a clearing with _traps?_

"I'm looking at this piece of paper," Jesse snarked back, lacing his tone with exaggerated patience. Lukas let out a huff of annoyance.

"No, I mean-" Lukas suddenly cut himself off. "Are you gonna pick that up?" His voice was panicked.

"Why not?" Jesse asked, keeping his gaze on the note. It was…transfixing. Almost hypnotic…

He hadn't realized he had picked it up until he was facing Lukas, who was peering at him warily, with the note clutched in his hand. "It could be rigged to, I dunno, explode," Lukas pointed out.

Jesse gave him the most unimpressed look he has ever mustered up in his life, and that's saying a lot. "It's a piece of _paper_. It would be supernatural for it to explode, and without a trace of redstone or gunpowder."

Jesse was quite proud of his comeback, but what Lukas said next made him falter. "Yeah, well, the pyramid would be supernatural, wouldn't it?"

Jesse couldn't help the shiver that ran down his back.

Now it was definite; there was something _nagging_ Jesse. Something that made this entire situation feel all-too familiar, yet nothing that Jesse had experienced in his lifetime.

_In his lifetime…_

Before he could pursue this train of thought, Lukas was glancing at the note with a slightly-impatient expression on his face. "Well, aren't you gonna open it?"

Jesse raised an eyebrow, surprised at Lukas' sudden change in tune. "I thought you were the one who was harping on and on about it being rigged to explode?"

Lukas shoved him, though Jesse could tell it was good-natured. "Oh, just open the thing already," he grumbled.

Jesse carefully unfolded the paper, making sure it wouldn't tear. All it had on it were five words, scrawled in thin, scratchy lines, that sent chills down the male's spine:

_I KNOW WHO YOU ARE_

Lukas choked; Jesse thumped him on the back. When he was finished with his bout, Lukas spluttered, "Whu-What? Who-I-_what_-"

Truthfully, Jesse was as disturbed as Lukas looked, but he continued to focus on the piece of paper in front of him instead of freaking out (_no one has time for you to be emotional, loser_) and scanned the piece of paper in front of him, rereading the words over and over again, trying to grasp the words.

_What does it mean? Who knows who _I _am? Wait, are they watching us-?_

Suddenly, _right_ in front of them, the paper disappeared in a burst of dust. Jesse and Lukas exchanged wide-eyed looks. Jesse _almost_ thought that he had imagined it, but seeing Lukas' steadily-paling face, decided that he didn't.

"You just saw that, right?" Lukas asked, his face stark-white.

Jesse frowned at his hands, which were still covered in white dust. "The piece of paper that suddenly exploded into a pile of dust in my hands? Yeah, pretty sure I did." Glancing back at Lukas, Jesse decided to crack a joke.

"Well, at least your theory of the paper being rigged to explode was accurate."

The tiniest smile flitted back onto Lukas' face, but it was gone before Jesse could be sure it was really there. Lukas glanced away, his eyes wide with shock. "We should get back to them," he murmured, fingers twisting anxiously. He glanced back at Jesse, and the male could see his own fear reflected in Lukas' own blue eyes.

"Yeah, let's go," Jesse decided, thoroughly spooked for the day. Lukas nodded, quite eager, and walked away.

Just as Jesse was about to follow, a breeze rustled the back of his neck, carrying with it a whisper. "_Jesse…"_

Jesse paused, puzzled. He turned, trying to catch sight of whoever it was that said his name.

Inexplicably, his eyes landed on a small cave, not too far away. It was quite a narrow cave, the opening barely able to fit Jesse if he went in sideways. He knew that the cave was part of a system of tunnels underground.

As soon as his eyes landed on it, the same tug that had drawn Jesse to the note came back with a vengeance. Jesse found himself stumbling towards it.

The small whisper grew louder, calling his name, over and over again. When Jesse was about fifteen blocks away from it, he heard smaller whispers, hushed voices and hisses underneath the loud rasp that seemed to drown everything else out. He was trapped, unable to move anywhere _except_ towards the cave.

"_Jesaiah…"_

Shock bolted through the young hero. _How _is it that-whoever's doing this-knows his real name? He's told no one of it, not even Axel and Olivia.

"Jesse?"

His friend's voice finally broke the hypnotic hold the cave seemed to implement on the male. He whirled around, facing Lukas. Immediately, the whispers stopped.

Lukas was looking at him with an odd expression. "Aren't you coming?" he asked.

Jesse shook his thoughts out of his head. "Yeah, I'm coming," he mumbled.

Lukas shot him a suspicious look but said nothing else. As Jesse stumbled after him, the whispers of the cave echoed in his mind, strumming a chord so deep within that Jesse didn't know that it was there in the first place.

He shivered.

* * *

The stranger's eyes glowed, disappointed.

Well. That attempt failed.

He frowned, sweeping his eyes over the site. He didn't understand. Most of his Chosen immediately followed through with going into the cave. This one was stronger than he'd initially thought.

Maybe it was time to take a different approach.

He stilled for a moment as an idea suddenly struck him. Quickly, he turned, scanning the town where the hero resided in.

Ah. He smiled, zoning in on his target.

Perhaps this first approach wasn't the right one.

But he knows better now.

After all…every hero needs a little…_incentive._

* * *

**A/N Ooh, what's gonna happen neeexxxxxxttttttt?**

**Leave a review saying what you guys will think happen next.**

**Man, this is...a lot of fun to write. Though I'm not sure if I'm overdoing it :P**

**My brainstorming session:**

_**Me: So, what'll it be today? Maybe some plotline, some spooky-esque theme-**_

_**My brain: HEY WHY DON'T YOU WRITE ABOUT A JESSE WHO CONSTANTLY DOUBTS HIMSELF EVERY TIME HE SO MUCH AS BREATHES**_

_**Me:**_

**Jesse needs a bit of love...he'll probably get it.**

**Sometime.**

**Maybe.**

**C'mon, guys, get those reviews coming XD**


	4. Recalling (Kidnapped)

Petra's face went pasty-pale. "What did it mean, they know who you are?"

Jesse had almost _never_ seen Petra like this; fearful, with terror flashing in her eyes. Even when she had the Wither, she was cool, calm. Keeping a level head even when everyone else couldn't.

To be honest, Olivia also turning pale and Axel's eyebrows furrowing was expected as he and Lukas described the paper appearing and the message.

But Petra freaking out?

Jesse rubbed his face, suddenly feeling tired. "We don't know," he admitted. To be honest, Petra becoming frightened was almost enough to make _him_ frightened. "But whatever it is, or whoever they are, we couldn't find any clues about them."

Lukas leaned back. "Did you tell them about the paper exploding?"

Olivia actually _squeaked_, and Petra's eyes widened. Axel leaned forward, the old glint coming back to his eyes. "That's awesome," he breathed. Upon becoming the receiving end of the combined might of Olivia's and Petra's glares, he shrunk away. "I, uh, mean _not_ awesome since you guys were close to it when it exploded…?"

Jesse hid an amused smile in his wrist. "Well, Lukas is overexaggerating."

With that, he launched into an explanation of how the paper _poofed_ right out of his hands. As he talked, Petra's eyebrow continued climbing higher and higher until it was in her hairline.

When he was finished, Petra summed it up by saying, "So, you and Lukas went to the scene. You found a piece of paper that had the creepily-written words, '_I know who you are.'_ Then, it poofed, and you guys came straight back here."

"That's one way to put it," Lukas muttered under his breath, loud enough for Jesse to hear. Jesse stifled a snort.

Petra paused, and her expression was a peculiar one, as if a thought suddenly occurred to her. She asked, "You _didn't_ find anything weird, did you?"

Oh boy. Jesse could _feel_ Lukas' stare boring into the back of his neck. Jesse took the couple of seconds to debate his choices: _should_ he tell them about the whispering cave? He didn't tell Lukas on the way back to the Order Hall; when the blond asked him if he was okay, Jesse shrugged it off and claimed he was fine.

_Just like how it should be,_ a voice whispered to him. _Why should you tell them something that should worry them? They _shouldn't _worry about you._

_They shouldn't care. What have _you _done for them, except get them all nearly killed?_

"Jesse…?" Petra's trailing voice snapped Jesse out of his thoughts. He suddenly realized that he hadn't answered back.

He cleared his throat and tried for a casual shrug. "Nope. Nothing."

Olivia was now peering at him suspiciously. As a redstone engineer, Jesse realized, she would be more perceptive than most. Attention to detail and all that.

"Are you sure?" Olivia asked suspiciously.

Jesse leaned on the wall. "Everything's fine, guys." Trying to take their minds off of him, he pointed out, "Shouldn't we be trying to figure out how this all connects?"

His efforts evidently worked, though Petra continued to gaze at him with furrowed brows. Jesse pointedly ignored her looks and kept his attention on Olivia, who was sifting through some paper.

"I've been trying and trying to find a pattern," Olivia moaned, dropping the papers on the table. "There doesn't seem to be _any_ logic to why this is happening. Nothing!"

The thing that had been nagging Jesse's brain was starting to violently shove at it, as if trying to wave around a paper in front of his face that he couldn't see. He tried fighting it down, wrestling with his inner mind in order to focus on the task at hand.

That was when Lukas, who had been quiet until now, suggested, "What about the Legend of Herobrine?"

Jesse paused in his mental wrestling. That was enough for the memory to overtake him again, filling his mind with a flashback of his mother- his mother. He hadn't thought of her in years.

Not her or Jessi.

With great difficulty, he shoved down the painful memory of the two and tried to filter them out of hearing the story of Herobrine (_his mother's voice, so soft and soothing_). He frowned, pondering over the story once more. _But that's a children's story!_

He looked over at the others, trying to gauge their reactions. Olivia merely looked incredulous, and Lukas, despite suggesting it, immediately looked like he wanted to curl up in a ball in embarrassment.

But Petra and Axel were staring at the other two, their brows furrowed. Jesse was suddenly reminded that they weren't exactly the _reading_ type; Axel because of his desire to combust everything, books included, and Petra because she was more of a mercenary than anything else.

Jesse cleared his throat, drawing everyone's attention back to him. "It _could_ be an explanation…" What he _didn't_ say was, _Not such a good explanation, but still an explanation._

"_Really_?" Olivia threw her hands into the air, looking exasperated. "You too?!"

"Hey!" Jesse suddenly felt the need to defend himself from Olivia. "I'm just saying, we can _consider_ it."

"Consider a make-believe tale made up to scare children as a reason as to why people are disappearing," Olivia snarked sarcastically. "Yeah, sure, it works."

Out of the corner of his eye, Jesse saw Lukas bite his lip, looking uncertain. "Yeah, I'll have to go with Olivia on this one, Jesse."

Jesse threw his hands into the air, exasperated. "_Really?_ That was _your_ idea!"

Lukas flinched.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Petra interrupted. She crossed her arms. "What's the Legend of Herobrine?"

As one, Lukas and Olivia stared at her, bug-eyed. Jesse would've found it funny if they weren't faced with three cases of kidnapping, a uniform pile of dirt, and an exploding piece of paper.

Scratch that, it was actually kinda funny.

Axel joined Petra, mirroring her look of confusion with his own. "Yeah…" He scratched the back of his head. "I don't know what you guys are talking about either…"

Olivia threw her hands back into the air for the second time, looking horrified. "_Axel!_"

"What?" Axel made a face at her. "Books are boring!"

Olivia pinched the bridge of her nose, her expression that of someone contemplating their entire existence. Jesse quickly stepped in before they began bickering again, turning towards the griefer and the warrior. "It's a story that my mom told me, when I was a little kid," he explained.

Axel's brow furrowed. "Wait, you never talked about your mom before."

Jesse felt his own jaw tense, clenching his teeth together. A knot in his chest formed, and he glanced away, trying to blink back tears. _No one needs to know._ "I didn't need to," he managed out through his teeth, sounding harsher than he meant.

Axel jerked back, his face morphing into an apologetic expression. "Listen, dude-"

_You don't deserve their pity._ Jesse cut him off sharply, rubbing his eyes. "Do you want the story or not?"

Petra and Lukas exchanged surprised glances, while Olivia just furrowed her brow at him. Axel was staring at him with wide eyes. Jesse decided to disregard their looks of concern and began the story. When he spoke, it was as if an otherworldly voice joined his own, adding a mystical element to the story.

"_Long ago, there was nothing but the Void. Then, out of the darkness came the Creator. He created the sun and moon; He hung the stars in the sky. And He created the very first world: the First Realm._

"_He used His power to create worlds filled with bright colors, life, and love. The towering mountains, the deepest oceans, the lively jungle, the dancing grasslands, the beautiful snow biome; He created them all._

"_But evil must balance the good, for light is not light without the darkness._"

"That made _no_ sense at all," Petra remarked. Axel murmured in agreement, yelping when Olivia smacked him. Jesse paused, shooting them both a deadpan look.

"Do you want me to finish?" he retorted. Without waiting for a reply, he started up again.

"_And so, from the ashes rose another: Herobrine the Dark One._

"_Many say that wherever he walks, mobs fall under his spell. He has been described as a man with glowing eyes, no pupils or irises. Hence his more famous name: the Eyeless One._"

Petra snapped her fingers, making Jesse jump. He lost track of the story, but it didn't matter; the redhead was speaking now. "_That's_ why the story sounds so familiar. I've heard of the Eyless Myth from some miners, way back before the Witherstorm."

Lukas nodded sagely, crossing his arms thoughtfully. "That's a different variation of the story, but it mostly correlates with the Legend of Herobrine."

Jesse nodded, several different myths popping back up in his head. "Yeah…" He turned to Lukas. "Wasn't there one also called the Vengeance Legend?"

Lukas nodded. "It portrays the same guy, but in a different way. Mostly about him massacring thousands of people in order to cause grief to the Creator. It was…" He paused, as if contemplating his choice of words. "...interesting."

Axel groaned. "Great. So am I the only one who doesn't know the story?"

Jesse frowned at him. "That was one of the stories I told you and Olivia during the campfire."

Axel shrugged, rolling his shoulders. "I fell asleep."

This promptly earned him another smack from Olivia.

Jesse couldn't help but roll his eyes, though he hid an amused smile. _Classic Axel._ "Well, actually _listen_ this time," Jesse shot back good-naturedly.

Axel grumbled, but he fell silent as Jesse opened his mouth again. Despite losing his place initially, the words rolled right off his tongue naturally.

"_He was sly and cunning. Being the opposite of the Creator, Herobrine favored the destruction and death of millions, beginning with picking off people, a few at a time, and always leaving structures of dirt and cobblestone in the hopes of goading the Creator so that Herobrine may destroy him._

"_The Creator knew of his plan, but He also knew that Herobrine, in the end, was no match for Him. So the Creator descended onto the First Realm, ready to fight the Evil One._

"_Mountains shook. Lightning cracked the sky in two. Lava split the ground. Millions of creatures and humans alike perished in this epic battle._

"_But in the end, the Creator emerged victorious. To restrain Herobrine from ever harming humankind again, the Creator locked Herobrine, along with the Evil One's creations, in a new fiery realm, now known as the Nether._"

"So Herobrine _created_ all the Nether mobs?" Petra asked, clarifying. Her brow furrowed in concern. "That's…"

"Disturbing?" Jesse finished. He sighed. "Yeah. I know." He paused, a thought dawning on him. His mother was never _that_ specific with the legend, much less him knowing the in-depth edition of the myth. Sure, he's told the story multiple times before, but only by his own mother's words. Why, then, did he feel as if he knew more about the story, even when he's heard it the same way, over and over again?

_Disturbing_ has taken on a new meaning for him.

Jesse realized he couldn't stop now; all his friends, even Lukas and Olivia, longtime readers, were enraptured by the tale. He cleared his throat and started up again. This time, he was sure that there was some other being who's joined his own, guiding the tale.

"_In order to ensure that Herobrine never unleashes his destruction upon the world, the Creator enlisted the assistance of a young man named Steve._" A gasp came from one of his friends, but Jesse was forced to plow on. "_For him, the Creator bestowed the powers of a deity so that Steve may fight against Herobrine._

"_For him, the Creator created the End, the contrast to the fiery Nether. A realm that resides in the Abyss itself._

"_Steve, using his newfound powers of creation, shaped the Endermen and the Ender Dragon, an army that he can lead against Herobrine's Nether Army. Steve was now known as Enderus, the ruler of the void realm. That is why the Wither skeletons hate the Endermen._

"_But there was a prophecy spoken of, many generations ago: a child of both the End and the Nether will go against the Eyeless One. They will either save the entire multiverse…or destroy it._"

A rumble of thunder resounded in the distance, breaking Jesse out of his trance. He waited for the force in him to pick back up, but he felt it vanish entirely. He cast his glance around, noting everyone's varying looks of awe and wonder.

Lukas remarked, "I didn't know you knew _that_ much about the legend."

Jesse glanced down at his feet. Confusion swirled in him. Finally, he glanced up at the blond. "I didn't."

* * *

Aiden growled, hacking away at the dummy. It was pouring rain and dark, he was in the woods and drenched, but he didn't care.

"Stupid Jesse… stupid losers…" With every word he spat out, his sword came flailing towards the dummy. "What did _they_ do to become the Order? They're nothing but a bunch of failures!"

With every sentence that spewed out of his mouth, boiling-hot rage simmered in his chest, slowly rising with each thought.

"They don't _deserve_ to become heroes! They didn't even _deserve_ to win EnderCon! All they are are A BUNCH OF LOSERS!"

_Splat!_ The dummy's head smacked against the mud that had formed from the rain. For a second, Aiden panted heavily, straining to pull air back into his lungs.

"Really?" a darkly-amused voice sounded from behind him. "I thought they did pret-ty well."

Aiden yelped, spinning around and automatically brandishing his sword. The stranger chuckled. "Let's make this more civil, shall we?" Before Aiden could register his words, the newcomer snapped his fingers.

Immediately, Aiden's sword _poofed_, vanished. Aiden stared at his empty hand for a moment, stunned. His brain was short-circuiting, his mind whirling. _No, that can't be possible, that just can't…_ He glanced up and let out a terrified shriek when he realized that the stranger's face was in front of his.

The first thing he noticed were the stranger's eyes. His eyes were completely white and _glowing_. There were no pupils or irises within. Just a white. A glowing, raging, burning white that promised death.

Aiden let out another strangled yell and fell back from the stranger. _Not possible, not possible…_

The stranger tilted his head, a wolfish smile spreading across his lips. "Do you recognize me?"

"You're-" Aiden gasped for air, trying to find the words. "You're not-you're not real!"

"Oh?" The stranger tilted his head the other way.

"You're just a myth! You can't be-"

Aiden screamed when the stranger's hand was squeezing his arm. He was just _there_, as if he'd teleported. The stranger's touch was a burning cold that surged in his own veins, making his arm go numb. But Aiden recognized the feeling, that feeling of adrenaline pumping through his veins, of his heart beating rapidly, the roiling emotions tumbling within.

Hatred.

The stranger's smile was dark-humored as he yanked Aiden to his feet. "How about you help me with something, eh?" he purred.

Aiden's scream was cut off abruptly, leaving only the howling wind and the pounding rain in its wake.

* * *

**A/N Whew! You guys have ****_no idea_**** how hard it was for me to write this! Thank goodness!**

**Anyways, looks like Aiden's in for some nice terrifying vacation...**

**I'd say that Jesse is acting pretty short with his friends because he's completely stressed out, as well as the fact he prefers to believe that they shouldn't care about him too much. Poor Jesse :(**

**Leave a review!**

**EDIT 10/26/19: Capitalizing error with the Creator**


	5. A Hero's Incentive

**Review Reply:**

**idontwritetoomuch: Yup, Aiden's...yeah... / Yeah, poor Jesse. Having to deal with unexplainable kidnappings is enough to make anybody go insane. / Aww, thank you! I try my best**

**arap2004: I'm _super_ glad you like it! / Aww, thaaaannnnkkksssssss! That means so much to me!**

**Warning: There's some angst up ahead. It will get better. Hopefully.**

* * *

Jesse was awoken when the door to his room banged open, slamming and rebounding from the wall. On instinct, he reached for his sword, but it didn't matter.

Olivia barged in, and Jesse's stomach dropped. Her expression showed that she had news, and it wasn't good.

"Aiden's gone."

"What?" Suddenly, Jesse was wide awake. He flung the covers off himself, already fully dressed (he slept with his clothes on; a habit from all the late nights from sifting through paperwork) and approached Olivia. "What do you mean, he's gone?"

Olivia bit her lip, looking uncomfortable. "I mean he vanished, just like the…other three cases."

Jesse cursed under his breath, frustration boiling over. He grabbed his armor and slipped the top half on, sprinting out the door. He barely heard Olivia calling his name as he skidded to a halt, flinging the doors to the main hall open.

There stood Lukas, white-faced with shock. He was sitting in the middle of the floor, his knees drawn up to his chest. Petra was next to him, rubbing his back and whispering something in his ears. Axel stood a little ways away, looking slightly uncomfortable. Jesse could see why: Axel has never had the best relationship with Lukas.

Jesse ran in, coming to a screeching halt next to Petra. "What happened?" he demanded.

Petra looked up, her eyes reflecting his worry. "It happened an hour ago." She paused, as if wondering what she would say next would drive Jesse over the edge.

"Aiden-" Lukas shuddered, his face going even more white, if that was possible. Petra paused in order to rub Lukas' back soothingly before continuing. "Aiden disappeared just last night. Same thing as the other two cases: no indication of where he went."

"Where did it happen?"

"The woods that were just outside the gates." Jesse frowned, puzzling over Petra's words.

_So Aiden was just outside the gates when he disappeared? But a lot of people should've seen it. After all, a lot of them come through here. Unless…_ Jesse's eyes widened. _The thunderstorm!_

Jesse had thought, when the rain was pouring and the winds were howling, that the storm that had somewhat-abruptly settled in was unnatural. Even now, it was _still_ howling outside. He didn't think much of it, though.

Now that he thought about it, could that be…?

Jesse recalled several legends he's heard of, which detail how Herobrine had a limited control over the weather and only at certain times.

_No. It's just a myth. A children's story._

But what else could explain the storm?

Lukas stood abruptly, startling Petra and Jesse. Jesse frowned, watching the blond teetering unstably. "We've…we've gotta find him," Lukas muttered. He began making his way towards the exit shakily. "We gotta find him."

Petra nabbed Lukas' arm, stopping him in his tracks. "Lukas, you're in no shape to-"

Lukas jerked his arm away and turned. Jesse was almost knocked over by the force of Lukas' angry glare. Jesse saw that the blond had bloodshot eyes and dark bags underneath them. _Wow, he mustn't have slept even _before _the news._

"I don't care," Lukas snapped. He jabbed a finger towards the exit doors. "_Aiden's_ out there, all alone, with _whoever_ it was who took the others. We _need_ to find him! They could be _torturing_ him, for all we know!"

"Lukas, I get it," Petra pleaded. "But, you have to start _thinking._ You're in no shape to be running through the rain. Just-"

Lukas swept her hand away, his glare turning into a snarl. "That's easy for _you_ to say," he shot back. "It's not _your_ friend who's out there, all alone, with a dangerous kidnapper!" Jesse could see a flash of hurt pass through Petra's eyes. Just as suddenly, her face twisted in a mask of anger to hide her hurt.

Sensing the impending conflict, Jesse tried to step in. "Whoa, guys, calm dow-"

"Calm _down?_ I think it's _Lukas_ who needs to calm down!" Petra crossed her arms, scowling at the blond. "After all, _he's_ the one being irrational!"

A growl erupted in Lukas' throat. "So you're calling _me_ _irrational?_" He took a threatening step forward.

Jesse tried to muscle his way in between the two, but by now they were in each others' faces, initiating a glare-down. "Guys-"

"Why, you have a problem with that?" Petra shot back. "You think it's a _good_ idea to just run around in the rain, with no clues as to where Aiden is?"

Jesse shot a pleading gaze to Axel and Olivia; he needed help with this situation. But Axel gave him a helpless look, as if unsure with how to deal with the situation. Olivia was also giving him an apologetic look, as if to say, _Sorry, you're on your own._

"It's better than sitting around here doing nothing!" Lukas thundered.

"GUYS!" Jesse finally snapped, pushing the two of them away from each other. He muscled his way in between them, holding a hand to their chests to stop them from charging each other. "Stop it!"

Petra and Lukas both reeled backwards, shocked expressions plastered on their faces. Lukas was the first to snap out of his dazedness, getting into Jesse's face and poking his finger into the young hero's chest. Jesse had _never_ seen Lukas so riled up and ferocious before today.

"You _never_ cared about Aiden, did you?" the blond accused. "You're always thinking about yourself! You're no hero!"

Lukas' words hit too close to home: _You're useless. You're trash. You're no hero. You're nothing._ Jesse couldn't help but reel back in shock, vaguely aware of the shocked gasps coming from his friends.

He squeezed his eyes shut, tears threatening to spill. Even as he tried desperately to reel in his emotions, the small, persistent voice in his mind taunted, _You see? Even your _friends _think you're nothing! You're no hero, so stop pretending you are one._

"This has gone far enough," Petra growled, grabbing Lukas by the arm and unceremoniously hauling him away from Jesse.

Jesse was barely aware of anything, his mind whirling over and over again: _Loser. Failure. You're no hero. You're nothing. Don't think you're anything more._

"Jesse?" Jesse looked up to see Olivia's concerned expression, Axel shooting Lukas a withering glare in the background. "Are you okay?"

Jesse paused, contemplating his options. Finally, he settled for a, "Why wouldn't I be?"

Olivia gave an exasperated sigh. "Jesse, Lukas just flat-out insulted you! You couldn't _possibly_ think that it's okay!"

_Maybe it is if it's true._ Jesse tried for a casual shrug so that Olivia might not be able to perceive what he was thinking. Aloud, he said, "Look, I know that Lukas is tired. We _all_ are." An idea began forming in Jesse's head. "How about you guys get some sleep? It's been a long day."

Olivia was looking at him strangely. "What about you?"

Jesse shrugged away her concern. "I'll sleep. _After_ I get something done first."

Olivia sighed, massaging her temples. "Jesse, you've _barely_ been sleeping. Ever since the disappearances, I've seen you in your office at two in the _morning_, sleeping!"

Jesse opened his mouth to reply when a thought struck him. He frowned. "Wait, if you've seen me at two, then what are _you_ doing?" Jesse pointed out.

Olivia let out a low sigh, evidently realizing her words meant as much to herself as to Jesse. "Fine," she finally conceded. "But you _better_ be sleeping." With that, she turned, trudging away.

Axel stood by, looking torn between confronting Jesse and following Olivia. Apparently, Axel decided on the former, since he approached Jesse.

"Listen buddy…" Axel trailed off, rubbing the back of his neck. His tone was gentle. "If you need anything, just know that I'm here for you, m'kay?"

Jesse smiled, amusement surging in him. "And if I need something blown up?"

"Then you can _definitely_ come to me!" Axel's eyes shown with mirth. The two of them chuckled at their joke.

Then Axel's eyes turned serious, and Jesse felt the mood of the atmosphere change back to seriousness. "But seriously, dude, if you need me, I'll be here."

Jesse offered a hesitant smile. "Thanks, buddy."

Axel nodded, smiling slightly, before lumbering towards his room.

Left alone, Jesse reached into his inventory and absentmindedly began playing around with a ceremonious dagger. The dagger's blade was black and had been made so that it resembles a snake fang, with purple gems encrusting the hilt and leather handle. It was a family heirloom, passed down from generation to generation.

His mother had given him the dagger and given another dagger, that with a straight blade, almost like a mini-sword, with orange gems, to his sister. What she had said was still fresh in his mind, as if she had only said it yesterday.

"_Remember, this is your heritage. You are warriors. You must always fight for what's right."_

Jesse narrowed his eyes, the hurt from Lukas' comments all but forgotten. Determination replaced it, surging within him. Maybe he _wasn't_ a hero. Maybe he wasn't anybody important.

The least he could do, then, was give Lukas back his friend.

* * *

Jesse stood in the mud. Lightning flashed overhead, the wind howled, and thunder roared, yet he ignored it all.

What he was focused on was the beheaded dummy, lying abandoned in the mud. He frowned, nudging the dummy's head away. Jesse wondered what had Aiden been doing prior to being kidnapped.

Lightning flashed again, illuminating the ground. Jesse noticed that there were shadows that were always in the same place when the electric charge shot through the sky. He pondered what he had seen. It wasn't the trees, that's for sure; the shadows displayed were more solid.

A nagging feeling tugged at Jesse's gut, urging him to find the source of the shadows. It was either on instinct, or it was something far darker. Whatever the case, Jesse glanced up.

And his jaw dropped open.

Above him, suspended in midair, were cobblestone structures. Someone can say what they want; Jesse was _definitely_ sure that there had been no structures there, much less _floating cobblestone._

_Definitely a sign that our kidnapper was here,_ Jesse thought.

Jesse happened to glance down again. At his feet was a piece of paper that had most definitely _not_ been there before. Jesse bent down and picked it up. Creepily, it was _dry_, even though Jesse's own skin was slick with rainwater, and his normally-fluffy hair was matted down. Jesse chanced a glance to see if it was a note. There it was: the same scratchy handwriting that had been on the last note.

_FIND ME,_ it merely said, before poofing out of existence.

Immediately, the potent tug that had drawn Jesse to the whispering cave started up again, more insistent and forceful than ever. Jesse found himself stumbling away from Aiden's disappearance site and towards the dirt-pyramid site, which wasn't that far away from where he was. Jesse tried to take control of his own body again, but the _tug_ was unyielding.

Sooner rather than the preferred later, Jesse found himself in front of the cave, barely wide enough for him to fit through sideways. The whispers had come back, louder than ever, urging him on, _begging_ him, to enter.

Jesse took one last look around the clearing. He wondered if his friends would notice if he's gone in the morning. He wondered if they would worry.

_Why do you think they should?_ the small voice retorted. _You've brought nothing but trouble for them._

Jesse exhaled slowly before finally slipping through the crack, embracing the darkness and the whispers that clouded his ears.

* * *

The stranger's eyes glowed triumphantly.

_Finally._ Results.

Even though he still hasn't discovered his full potential, this was the first step to getting to where he needed to get.

The stranger stood. In a flash he was gone, leaving nothing behind that would indicate he had been there.

_I shall wait for you in the darkness._

* * *

**A/N So. This chapter was a little shorter than usual, but I hoped you liked it.**

**Lukas, being _very_ tired and worried, is decidedly _not_ the best companion to have in a stressful situation. So *wince* sorry, Lukas and Jesse.**

**The daggers will play an important part in the story later on; I'm just not gonna say when**

**Reviews would be very helpful, guys!**


	6. A Darker Agenda

**Review Replies:**

**idontwritetoomuch: Yeah, our favorite blond cinnamon roll - not so much a cinnamon roll when he's tired :P / Jesse _really_ should've... / Thanks! I'm really glad you're enjoying this story**

**arap2004: I'm glad that you're delving more and more into this story! / For me, at least, it's really easy to _become_ the character and see things through his/her eyes; I really am enjoying myself, trying to see what they would see. Immensely. Your reviews really means a lot to me!**

* * *

The cave wasn't as dark as Jesse anticipated.

Sure, it was still plenty dark, enough to make Jesse wary of mobs popping out suddenly and maiming him, but for the most part, it wasn't dark as in _Oh no I can't see!_ dark.

A tiny sliver of light shone, just enough for Jesse to truly appreciate how thin he was. Even then, his armor continually got caught on jutting pieces of rock, tiny enough so he didn't accidentally impale himself on them. Still, Jesse huffed every time the chinks of his armor snagged on them.

All the while, the insistent tug grew stronger with each shimmy (it wasn't wide enough for proper steps). At times, Jesse wondered if he would even _make_ it through the compressing stone walls, but then the tug would force him through the narrow way, as if his body had a mind of its own.

As he ventured forward, deeper into the cave, as he grew further away from the outside world, the sliver of light seemed to grow… stronger. As it grew, so did the pull. It was intoxicating, potent and insistent, as if promising dire consequences if Jesse were to back away from it.

After what seemed to be hours-which could be since Jesse didn't have a clock on him-Jesse finally squeezed through the last obstacle. By now, the white light was _burning_, searing his eyes shut. Jesse stumbled blindly forward. Big mistake.

Because then Jesse found himself in midair, accelerating downwards rapidly.

All at once, the blinding light vanished, leaving only the darkness of the cave. Strangely, Jesse could see just fine in the darkness. It was as if he had drunk a Night Vision potion (which he hadn't).

And he saw that he was plummeting towards a trench of water. Facefirst.

It was amazing how panic worked two ways: it either worked against oneself, locking up their ability to think, or it lets instinct take over. Such was the latter case for Jesse.

Jesse twisted so that he was in a diving position, the memory of his last attempt resurfacing in his mind: "_Don't you know? You dive _into _the water. You don't land on top of it."_ He barely had time to recall the memory before he hit the water with a splash.

Immediately, pain coursed through Jesse's limbs, as if he was being electrocuted. In the distant back of his mind, Jesse wondered, _Isn't this _not _supposed to happen?_ But the greater part dissolved in panic. Against his own will, he began thrashing wildly, all fear clouding his logic.

_Get a grip! It's just water!_ Even so, it didn't stop him from shooting up to the surface and leaping out onto the rocky ground, panting hard. Sweat poured down his forehead, but at least the adrenaline was wearing off.

His heart thudding back to its normal pace, Jesse took a moment to survey his surroundings.

He was in a large stone chamber. The floor was ringed by a deep trench full of water, as Jesse so rudely discovered. The ceiling arched high above his head in a dome-like structure, making him question how far deep he went into the ground.

Everything screamed _Ancient!_ at Jesse. No matter where he turned, he always had that _nagging_ feeling that this structure had not been built by humans. No, it radiated something more powerful. Something deeper. Something…darker.

Pebbles shifted in the background. Immediately, Jesse's instinct went into overdrive. He whirled, simultaneously slashing blindly towards the newcomer when…

_Poof!_ His fingers felt empty air where there was once wood. The sudden imbalance in his fist made him flail his arm in an effort to stop the momentum. Jesse stared down at his now-empty hand, confusion clouding his thoughts. _How? _was all his brain would ask. _How did this happen? How did my sword just…vanish?_

The hairs on Jesse's neck stood straight up. _Something's wrong._

As if on cue, a low chuckle, gravelly and dark, echoed through the chamber. Jesse snapped his head around wildly, trying to pinpoint the source. Unarmed, in the midst of a dark, stone chamber, and having nothing on him, Jesse was _definitely_ on the border of panicking right now.

Suddenly, the air shifted, producing a fierce breeze that tore at his hair. He subconsciously shivered, the breeze clawing at his soaking-wet armor and inflicting its cold, cold, unmerciful wrath on the brown-haired teen.

Jesse distantly noted that the breeze was circling around the center of the floor. Soon, the wind picked up so much that he found himself scrambling back, trying to ground himself from being forced into the tornado-like anomaly.

Then, a flash of white light, and all at once, the wind dropped, leaving only a whisper in the darkness. Jesse's breath caught in his throat as he saw what had appeared so abruptly-or rather, _who_.

The man in the center had closely-shaven brown hair, tan skin, and a smooth face. He wore a teal-colored T-shirt and dark blue jeans. The state of his clothes indicated that he didn't care much for appearances.

But that's not what scared Jesse.

It was his eyes: his glowing, cruel, cold eyes. No pupils or irises. Just a glowing white that flashed with a torrent of emotions, though it was nothing that belonged to the figure: fear, anger, hatred, bitterness, envy, greed, rage, fury. It was as if he's witnessed all of those emotions, yet he's found a way to detach himself from them.

It couldn't be. _It couldn't be._ Jesse had been so sure. Ever since the Legend of the Order of the Stone had been proven as a lie, he had locked away any memory he's had of other stories, completely convinced that they were just a thrill-seeker. Entertainment.

A children's story.

But staring into those white, soulless eyes?

_It can't be._

But it was.

The man's eyes glittered coldly, as if knowing what the brown-haired teen was thinking. Jesse was paralyzed. He couldn't do anything. All he could do, really, was stare into those eyes that foretold death.

Then the man smiled.

"Finally. We meet for the first time, Jesaiah Kenos."

* * *

"What? No." Jesse shook his head forcefully. "You aren't real."

His mind was whirling, trying to comprehend what was right in front of him, trying to explain the glowing eyes. It just _couldn't_ be. It wasn't real. _He_ wasn't real. Jesse's brain was short-circuiting as he stared at the tan-skinned man. There must be a logically-sound explanation for this.

Jesse briefly recalled the Legend of the Order of the Stone. _That_ hadn't been real. It was never real; mainly a story to cover up their shame. And yet most people thought it was true. If a story that had been true was false, then a story that had been widely known as a myth was _definitely_ false…

Right?

The man chuckled, freezing Jesse's blood. His laugh was cold, cruel, and sadistic. "Oh, Jesaiah." He shook his head. "Sometimes you must be able to discern what is true…" He took a step forward. Jesse found himself backing away. "...and what is not."

How did he know what Jesse was thinking?

_No._ He _refused_ to accept this. It was a prank. _It was a prank._

_Is it? Really?_ the voice taunted. _What do those glowing eyes say?_

Jesse shoved the thought into the back of his mind. "You aren't real!" he protested, his mind scrambling to get a firm grip on reality. Because this _wasn't_ reality. This was all a dream; any minute now, he was going to wake up, finding himself face-planted on the desk.

"Oh, I am _very_ much real, I assure you," the man taunted, low and soft.

The Legend of the Order had been false; every legend Jesse has ever heard of had been proven as scientifically incorrect. The Legend of Herobrine _had_ to be false; he wasn't losing his mind.

At least, Jesse _hoped_ not.

"I see you still doubt," the white-eyed man sneered, his cold smile sending shivers down Jesse's spine. "Let me _show_ you."

In the blink of an eye, he was right in front of Jesse, despite formerly being a good ten blocks away. Jesse barely had time to yelp before the stranger gripped the brown-haired teen's wrist, pressing his hand into the young man's flesh.

Instantly, needles of burning cold stabbed into the skin where the stranger was touching. The pain was almost unbearable; Jesse tried to yank himself away, but the white-eyed man continued pressing down, restraining him.

And yet…Jesse felt something else. A roiling hot feeling that lurched in his stomach, as well as hearing the blood roaring in his ears. It was a feeling that was detached to his own, a feeling that, somehow he knew, the man was radiating.

Anger.

The white-eyed man released his arm. Caught off-guard, Jesse fell to the floor with an _oomph!_ He took a moment to stare up into those glowing eyes.

Hatred, fear, fury, anger. All of them were rolled into one tidal wave in the pulsing whites of his eyes. Who knew that so much emotion could radiate so strongly from him?

"You…you _are_ Herobrine," Jesse whispered, fear surging in his stomach.

Herobrine bowed mockingly. "The one and only."

As Jesse tried _desperately_ to grope for something - anything, really - to clear the fog of fear that had settled in his mind, a thought suddenly struck him, rooting him back to reality. In the momentary clarity, Jesse remembered something.

Maybe it was out of foolish bravery, but Jesse wheeled on the white-eyed man, steeling himself with resolve. He wasn't _without_ fear, per say, but it had momentarily vanished.

Jesse wasn't stupid; he was capable of putting two and two together.

"What did you do to the missing people?"

Herobrine did the last thing Jesse ever expected; he clapped, slowly and with a strange glint in his eyes. "Very good, Jesaiah, very good."

Jesse flinched. "Don't call me that."

"Why?" the entity inquired, mockery laced in his tone. "A sore spot?"

Jesse realized that Herobrine was trying to deflect off his question. Jesse spoke again, this time more forcefully to show that he wasn't joking around. "Stop jumping around. _What did you do to them?_"

Herobrine flashed him a wolfish grin, his teeth glinting in what little light that was in the cave. "My dear boy," he purred, "what made you think _I_ was the one deflecting?"

"That - I -" Jesse sputtered, caught off guard. Everything about Herobrine seemed…_wrong_. From the glint in his eyes, to his oddly-silky voice. Jesse mentally raised his guard, smoothing his face into a mask. "Answer the question!"

"Ever the hero, huh?" Herobrine observed. He waved his hand dismissively. "I sent them back to their homes. They're worthless to me now."

Jesse felt his tense muscles relax until Herobrine added with narrowed eyes, "Now you, on the other hand…"

"What do you want from me?" Jesse snarled. Inside, he was pleased that he sounded so aggressive and hostile towards the entity.

But the white-eyed man didn't even flinch. Instead, he tilted his head to the side, his eyes flashing in the darkness. "Directly? Nothing." He took a step towards Jesse, who involuntarily took a step backwards. "But you possess a power…a power that is _perfect_ for my plans…" Step. Step.

"Fat chance," Jesse spat at Herobrine, trying to conceal his rising claustrophobia as Herobrine advanced on him. "I'll _never_ help you."

"You mistake me," Herobrine sneered. "I wasn't asking." He lunged.

Jesse scrambled backwards, not aware of anything except for those glowing white eyes.

At least, not until he found himself tumbling in open air, which abruptly ended when the stone floor met his back. Abovehead, he heard Herobrine's cackling echoing eerily in the tunnels. A fear awoke in Jesse, and he scrambled to his feet, sprinting wildly through the dark.

"Run, little hero!" Herobrine taunted. "You'll never be able to escape me! Your destiny lies with _me!_" His cackle rang in Jesse's ears, hearing it even long after it stopped.

However fast and hard Jesse ran, however much he tried to run from the white-eyed man, even in the sunshine when he reemerged from the tunnel system (probably from wild luck), he knew that Herobrine was right about one thing.

He could never escape.

* * *

**A/N Yipes, Jesse's in...in a bit of pickle right now.**

**Aaannd now Herobrine's _officially_ introduced to the story. *Slowly claps***

**Jesse needed a little, ah, _convincing_ in order to believe in our ****white-eyed, ****all-time favorite entity.**

**Reviews are extremely helpful, especially since they make me happy and...yeah.**

**Soo review!**


	7. Warnings

**Review Replies:**

**Nope. Nothing. Nada.**

**WARNING! Death by strangulation mentioned up ahead!**

**Now that that's out of the way. . . Onto the fic!**

* * *

Jesse was barely aware of his surroundings. He was rushing through the streets, weaving between the people and jumping over stray livestock, not bothering to slow down. He was distantly aware of people pointing and whispering, but it was as if his body was on autopilot.

All he could think, over and over again in his head, was, _Herobrine's real. He's planning something, he has to be. Why else would he say that stuff to me?_

_I gotta warn my friends._

In what felt like a heartbeat to Jesse, he found his foot planted on the first quartz step of the building. He saw his feet fly up them and propel him towards the doors. His arms acted of their own accord, grabbing them and flinging them open with a _bang!_

Jesse didn't think that he was doing any of it; it certainly didn't _feel_ like he was doing it. It was as if he was merely watching from a screen from the point-of-view of the protagonist, impassive and emotionless. All he could coherently think was, _I gotta warn them. Herobrine's real, and he's back._

It was only someone slamming their hand on his shoulder that brought him back to reality, albeit in a rush. His eyes followed the hand up the arm and into a face, pale with worry and framed with red hair.

_Petra,_ his brain distantly supplied, but his ears were registering her words:

"Where have you _been?_ We woke up at dawn and found out that you weren't in your office _or_ your bed! Were you up all night?" Petra slightly shook his shoulder, her face twisting into a look of slight anger. "And don't say you were just _taking a walk!_"

Any other day, Jesse reckoned he would've quailed under her look of anger, scared for his life. Now, there was nothing: only a buzzing numbness that seemed to take hold of his very being, extinguishing everything except one:

Fear.

"Jesse?" Petra's face eased into concern. He was distantly confused. Why had Petra turned from angry to concerned in a heartbeat? Was Herobrine _here_, right now?

The thought spurred him into even _more_ panic, but this time, his panic sharpened his senses, as if to say, _Get it together, Kenos!_ A shard of clarity penetrated his fogged brain, enough so that he could see the redhead in front of him.

Jesse gripped Petra's arm and pulled her into the hall, ignoring her cries of, "Wait, Jesse, what's going on?"

"He's back," Jesse breathed. He released her arm and turned to her. Petra actually took a step back, seeing his expression, and her eyes went wide with shock. "He had _always_ been real, and now he's back!"

"Who?"

"Herobrine," Jesse hissed.

Petra's forehead creased with worry. Slowly, she began shaking her head. "Jesse…Herobrine isn't _real_. . ."

Jesse swallowed, trying to scramble for a coherent thought. His brain was still wading in panic, which he did _not_ appreciate, not if he wanted to sound sane.

"Look, I know how. . ." He struggled for the word he was looking for. "I know how _insane_ it sounds, and how much I probably need to go to a mental institution for it, but trust me, he's _real_." He grabbed her arm and stared into her gray eyes, willing for her to understand. "I wouldn't've believed it if I didn't see it."

Petra's critical gaze seemed to penetrate Jesse's very soul, analyzing whether or not he was telling the truth. Finally, she nodded. "Okay."

Jesse let go of her arm in shock, not expecting this reaction. He stared at her, wondering if he misheard her. "What?"

Petra crossed her arms and simply stated, "I believe you."

"Wait, really?"

"Do you have _that _little faith in me?" Petra sounded offended.

"What? No," Jesse spluttered, thrown off-guard by her accusation, "but I was thinking that you would - I mean, that is, you -"

Evidently Petra got the gist of his spluttering since her face softened. "Jesse, I know that you wouldn't lie; it's not in your nature."

Jesse felt relief swamp him; he hadn't realized until now how important it was to him for someone to believe him.

Petra gently grasped his arm and led him towards the main meeting room. "C'mon," she said gently.

* * *

Axel snorted, leaning back in his seat. "That is the _funniest_ joke I've heard in a long time. Herobrine being real?" He winked at Jesse. "Good one."

Jesse was just staring at Axel, too stunned to contradict him. He had been so relieved for Petra to believe him that he didn't stop to consider if the others would follow suit.

_That's your problem,_ the voice shot snidely. _You put too much faith and trust in them. What, you think that _just _because you're friends, they automatically _believe _you?_

_You're naive, kid._

Jesse shook off the voice, though the disappointment left a bitter taste in his mouth. Meanwhile, Olivia nudged Axel, her face creased as if worried that Jesse would snap at the burly boy.

Axel glanced from Olivia's face to everyone else's, finally settling on Jesse's undoubtedly-serious expression. His grin faded. "Wait, you mean to tell me that. . . you're _serious?_"

That's when Olivia spoke up. She sounded oddly timid, as if wondering if Jesse would lash out. His friends' tones puzzled him. _Why_ would they be afraid of him?

"Jesse. . .we want to believe you, we really do. . ."

"But. . .?" Jesse had a sinking feeling that this wasn't about to go down well.

Olivia bit her lip before blurting out, "But what proof do you have of meeting him?"

Petra uncrossed her arms, eyes flashing. "_Jesse_ saw him," Petra snarled. "Isn't that good enough proof for you?"

Olivia held her hands up in a surrendering gesture, her eyes flashing with terror. "But he went outside, didn't he? He was in the rain and the wind! And, well -" Olivia shot Jesse an uneasy glance. "- people out in the rain for a prolonged period of time _have_ gotten sick…"

Suddenly, Jesse understood. "You think I hallucinated?" he asked quietly. "I got sick, and I. . . _hallucinated?_"

Olivia paused before reluctantly nodding. "Yes."

Jesse blew out air from his nose. He didn't - _couldn't_ \- fault Olivia for thinking this way. After all, even he had to admit that the circumstances he was in at the time were… highly questionable.

But every time the memory of Herobrine burning _anger_ into him with a mere touch was enough to convince him that what he's gone through was _real_.

Petra was arguing with Olivia. "But if he's gotten sick, then he should be coughing and sneezing, shouldn't he?" she challenged. "Besides, who hallucinates going into a _cave_ and remembering the details about it?"

Olivia bit her lip again before reluctantly nodding. "It _could_ be a trick caused by the lightning," she added.

"Again," Petra shot back, "he was in a _cave_."

Jesse could understand _why_ Olivia was having a hard time accepting what he said. After all, it was pretty clear that he either hallucinated an incredible amount, or he really _did_ face someone from a myth. And, with a logical people like Olivia, it was easier to believe the former rather than the latter.

Jesse took the moment to cast his eye on Axel. The burly griefer looked uneasy as he shifted his gaze between the two arguing females, as if wanting to believe Jesse's story but having doubts of his own.

Lukas was looking slightly guilty for some reason. He never looked up to meet Jesse's eyes once during his retelling of the story. Even now, he glanced up quickly. When he saw Jesse looking at him, he ducked his head again.

_Oh, right,_ Jesse thought. _The fight._

The shock that Herobrine was real, as well as running through town in a blind panic was enough to drive the entire fight out of Jesse's mind. Now that he looked closer, Lukas looked significantly better with the sleep he's obtained; he also looked very, very guilty.

_Couldn't he get it over with?_ Jesse thought to himself. After all, everything that Lukas had said about him was right.

Wasn't it?

Lukas sighed, lifting his head and speaking once the girls stopped arguing. "I don't know what to say," he began. "Jesse, I do think you aren't able to lie about this, nor did you make up a story about it. But. . ."

He paused, as if thinking through his words carefully. Jesse's heart plummeted.

"I'll have to go with Olivia on this one. How do we know that Herobrine's real and not something you _think_ you saw?"

Jesse felt yet another piece of hope shatter. He had been _so sure_ that they would believe him… and why?

Because they're friends?

_You stupid, foolish boy,_ the voice crowed. _When will you learn that they won't believe you?_

_Petra believes me,_ Jesse argued back.

_Only to make you feel better! She doesn't believe you anymore than they do._

Maybe it was right. Jesse _swore_ he saw Petra surveying him with a concerned expression.

Perhaps out of desperation, Jesse turned to Axel. "Axel, what do _you_ think?"

Axel started out of his stupor. He glanced at everyone before saying carefully, "Well, I mean it's hard to believe. . . _Herobrine?_ A _children's tale?_ Sorry dude, but I'm with Olivia on this one."

He shot Jesse an apologetic look, but it didn't matter to him. He couldn't hear anything except for the blood roaring in his ears.

_They don't believe me._

Jesse turned away abruptly, trying to mask his face into an emotionless mask. He felt the cracks in them widen. "I'm going to bed," he said shortly, steeling his voice so that it didn't tremble when he spoke.

He felt a hand on his shoulder. "Jesse -"

He shrugged off Petra's hand. "See you guys later." He trudged to his room, discouraged and dismayed by this sudden turn of events.

He hadn't realized how much them believing in him really meant to him until it was gone.

Not that it mattered.

_See?_ the voice taunted. _It's better that they didn't believe you anyways._

Jesse couldn't help but agree.

* * *

Herobrine grinned. The first phase of his plan was complete.

Phase two: isolate the boy.

With a snap of his fingers, the dank cave fell away as he whirled in the oblivion that was teleporting, the oblivion with which he was well accustomed.

Immediately, the world sharpened back into focus, sounds assaulting his ears.

He noted he was next to a well-lit tavern, the sound of people laughing and clinking drinks together filling his ears. The shadows that the people threw on the wall showed them to be dancing merrily.

Herobrine curled his lip in disgust. People being happy! Dancing and drinking merrily away! Eating to their hearts' content!

But he supposed he'll put up with it until he finds a reasonably-large group to enact his plan.

Not a moment too soon, the door opened. Out tumbled a group of townsfolk, all laughing and fooling around. Herobrine felt a smile flit its way onto his face. _Finally_.

He picked the teen that was a reasonable distance away from the rest of his group and muttered an incantation. A split second later, he was right behind the boy.

The teen turned, his eyes widening upon seeing Herobrine. He opened his mouth, perhaps to cry out for his friends. No one may ever know.

Herobrine quickly slammed his hand into the boy's throat, his fingers closing around the windpipe. The boy choked, clawing at the white-eyed entity's hand, his eyes shining with fear.

He better make this quick before the group noticed that he was gone. The boy continued to fight his grip, gurgling.

Herobrine felt the boy's spine in the teen's neck and squeezed, feeling the bones give way underneath his grip. The boy choked out a cry one last time before going limp.

Quickly, Herobrine grabbed the dead boy's forehead and muttered an incantation. He felt himself float upwards as his physical body disappeared. He willed himself to enter the body of the dead boy. He felt a sucking sensation, and then his physical eyes opened.

He got up and rolled his neck, feeling the bones popping in there. All of the teen's habits flashed in Herobrine's mind; this was a side effect of his possession powers, so that he could dwell among others without drawing suspicion to himself. He knew he hasn't got time to waste; he launched himself after the boys, catching up to the group.

"Where've you been, Marko?" The oldest-looking adult (by oldest, he looked to be about thirty), Tim - Herobrine's powers helpfully supplied - threw him a look.

Herobrine - or rather, Marko - shrugged. "Tripped," he fibbed, the knowledge of Marko being a clumsy kid popping in his mind.

Tim subtly relaxed. Evidently, he knew how much of a klutz Marko was. "Well, try to keep up without tripping every five seconds," he joked. Explosive laughter from the group shot into the air as another, slightly younger man grabbed Herobrine and put him in a headlock and rubbed his head vigorously.

If Herobrine hadn't had his powers of information, he would've judo-flipped the man, but his brain supplied that this was something called a _noogie_, which is meant for affection. Even so, he barely restrained himself from incinerating the man. How _dare_ he touch the great Herobrine!

"Well." Tim rolled his head. He jerked his head towards the road. "We should get going."

As they were walking, the other man - whose name was James - fell in beside Herobrine. "Didja hear the news about this morning?"

"Don't think so," Herobrine said, though he kept his voice level. He knew _exactly_ what the news must be about.

"Well, last night -" James lowered his voice. "- some guy named Aiden disappeared. But, just this morning, _everyone_ who disappeared reappeared, almost as if it had never happened!" His eyes shone with - to Herobrine's utter disgust - admiration. "I have a feeling that _Jesse_ was the one who saved them."

Herobrine scoffed. James pulled away, looking confused. "I doubt it," Herobrine muttered. He spoke just loud enough for James to hear, so that he could be intrigued.

It worked. "Why?" James asked, obviously curious and hurt.

"Only _real_ heroes could rescue people who were kidnapped," Herobrine sneered. "Jesse's nothing but someone who hides behind his friends."

James frowned. "But Jesse defeated the Witherstorm -"

"- after it devoured most of the world," Herobrine reminded James. He leaned in. "But I heard this rumor that he was the _cause_ of the Witherstorm."

Evidently, this was a slap to the face for James. He stopped, staring at Herobrine. "Wh-what?" he spluttered. "But Ivor was the one who created it! Everyone _knows_ that!"

Herobrine noted that everyone else was slowing down, discreetly listening in on their conversation. _Good._ "Yeah, but I heard from someone who was _there_ that day. He told me that Jesse's group had been poking through Ivor's stuff, and they found this potion that was supposed to have destroyed the Wither Storm." He shook his head with well-concealed faux disappointment. "What good of a hero could he be if he could've ended the threat right then and there?

"Instead, he let it devour almost the entire world, and once he was done cleaning up the mess he made, what did he do? He left _us_ to pick up the broken pieces!" Herobrine paused, letting the words sink in for a moment, and glanced around, gauging everyone's reactions. Much to his delight, James looked disgusted, while everyone else's aura pulsed with anger.

_Good. Very, very good._

"If that doesn't convince you -" He shrugged. "- well, what kind of _hero_ doesn't go out to search for people who were missing for two weeks?"

Tim gave a low snarl, his eyes narrowed into slits, but Herobrine sensed it was directed not at him, but Jesse. _As intended._

James stared at Herobrine, a defiant look in his eyes. "How do _you_ know this?" he challenged.

Herobrine grinned. "Ivor himself told me."

The reaction was immediate. James stumbled backwards, his eyes wide with shock and horror. "Wh-what?" James whispered. "B-but that means. . ." James swallowed, lowering his eyes.

Herobrine put on a fake mask of sympathy as he looped an arm around James' shoulders. "I know," he said. "But who wants a hero who wouldn't step up to his responsibilities? Who would want to follow a leader who can't lead at all?"

With obvious difficulty, James raised his head, locking eyes with Herobrine. Herobrine felt a surge of satisfaction upon seeing the look of cold anger in the man's eyes. _Excellent._

"Then -" James' hand curled into a fist. "- Jesse doesn't deserve to be the hero."

Herobrine couldn't help the smile of glee that graced his lips.

Finally. After all these years of waiting.

His plan was coming to fruition.

* * *

**A/N FINALLY! I'M DONE!**

**Sorry, guys, for the temporary hiatus. I kinda lost the will to continue this story after the last chapter BUT IT'S FINALLY DONE!**

**Just an FYI, if the characters were OOC, I apologize. I had written out the plot for every chapter (about 29, including an epilogue), and this was the way that this could fit into the storyline. But there's also an explanation for this:**

**In my mind, Petra would probably be the first to believe Jesse, since she's practically closest to him out of all her friends, and she _knows_ that he wouldn't lie even if he tried. Also, she's a mercenary; she's seen crazy stuff before.**

**Olivia would be the one who would be most skeptical about this development; as a person who relies on logic to solve most problems, having a supernatural entity suddenly pop into their lives and threaten to destroy the world doesn't exactly sit right with her.**

**Lukas, obviously, and Axel would be the middle ground. Lukas sees both sides of the coin, but still being Jesse's newer friend, he probably wouldn't know what to believe; his default would probably be siding with logic. Axel's mostly thrown into one shock after another; being told an age-old story only recently and suddenly told that the story was actually true and there was a bloodthirsty entity out to get them. . . Is it any wonder he reacts the way he does?**

**Anyways, love the support, guys! Review, follow, favorite, whatever you want to do!**


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